FCWInsider

DHS names West acting deputy CIO

Barry West has been named acting deputy CIO at the Department of Homeland Security, according to the agency.

West will officially begin that job on Oct. 15 and also start a limited-term Senior Executive Service job as senior advisor, the agency said in an email to FCW.

West had been DHS senior accountable official for risk management as well as senior advisor to the CIO, working to implement the president’s cybersecurity executive order.

West has wide experience across the federal government. He's served in senior IT roles at the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation, the National Weather Service, the Federal Emergency Management Agency, the Commerce Department and the Pension Benefit Guaranty Corporation.

DHS is still shopping around for a permanent CIO. The job is a presidential appointment, but it does not require Senate confirmation.

Stephen Rice took over the agency’s IT operations as acting CIO after former CIO Richard Staropoli resigned his position at the agency this past summer. Staropoli had been on the job only since April.

Democrats will vote on an appropriations package to reopen all the federal agencies shuttered during the partial shutdown, but the lack of wall funding will likely means the measure won't get a vote in the Senate.